The Navajo Code Talkers
"We all belong to America, we are a family, and as such, we have a common enemy. And therefore, we need to be part of that, we need to contribute."
---Navajo Code Talker Peter MacDonald, Sr.
An Ethnic Group Neglected:
During the 19th century, the rampant
expansion of the American frontier, justified by the concept of Manifest
Destiny, represented a glaring duality. As American pioneers embraced both the
American Ideals and numerous opportunities to better themselves and their
families, an entire race was being run off their homeland and crushed into
pitiful, derelict reservations. Native Americans faced innumerable prejudices
and racial slurs that made a mockery out of the tribal customs their individual
tribes had preserved for centuries.
Therefore, their violent response, though doomed to fail, was validated. Carried out through clandestine raids upon pioneer homesteads, revenge tactics varied from tribe to tribe, and it was imperative to operate with the utmost secrecy. For the Navajo tribe, success was embodied through the use of a secret code crafted from the complicated Navajo tongue. Marked by the musical, complex structure and subtle tones of the Navajo language, this secret code ensured many a victory for this marginalized Native American tribe.
Despite their eventual loss in the face of the unrelenting tide of avaricious pioneers, Navajos proudly cultivated their ethnic traditions and kept their unique culture alive even on reservations. However, their plight wasn’t over yet. The nauseating concept of “kill the Indian, save the man” permeated the minds of Americans across the nation, and soon young Native American children were required to attend scholastic institutions that banned their native tongue and schooled them in a foreign, nigh incomprehensible one. Nonetheless, all was not lost. After years of turmoil and racism, ethnicities across America would be exposed to the revelation that the rich culture Americans had once tried so hard to extinguish would, in the end, become their saving grace.
Therefore, their violent response, though doomed to fail, was validated. Carried out through clandestine raids upon pioneer homesteads, revenge tactics varied from tribe to tribe, and it was imperative to operate with the utmost secrecy. For the Navajo tribe, success was embodied through the use of a secret code crafted from the complicated Navajo tongue. Marked by the musical, complex structure and subtle tones of the Navajo language, this secret code ensured many a victory for this marginalized Native American tribe.
Despite their eventual loss in the face of the unrelenting tide of avaricious pioneers, Navajos proudly cultivated their ethnic traditions and kept their unique culture alive even on reservations. However, their plight wasn’t over yet. The nauseating concept of “kill the Indian, save the man” permeated the minds of Americans across the nation, and soon young Native American children were required to attend scholastic institutions that banned their native tongue and schooled them in a foreign, nigh incomprehensible one. Nonetheless, all was not lost. After years of turmoil and racism, ethnicities across America would be exposed to the revelation that the rich culture Americans had once tried so hard to extinguish would, in the end, become their saving grace.
"It's the land of the free because the Navajo were brave."
---Navajo Code Talker, Joe Vandever, Sr.
Origins of the
Navajo Code Talkers: Little did Philip Johnston, the
father of the Navajo Code Talkers Project, know, but his revolutionary idea
would drastically impact the outcome of WWII and the future of the United
States of America. Never before had the inclusion of Native Americans been
considered so openly—never before had this ethnic group been entrusted to such
an integral role in our nation’s fate.
Growing up in the Four Corners (containing New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, and Utah) as a boy who, unlike his peers, became well-acquainted with the Navajo tribe even as a child, Philip Johnston was no stranger to the confusing Navajo tongue. Outsiders and Johnston alike could make nothing of this language, with its unique intonations and fast-paced rhythm striking a dizzying cadence for even the most adept listener. Thus, when Johnston saw that the U.S. was in need of cryptographical help, he knew just the solution. Indubitably, stating that the situation was dire represented a gross understatement. The all-out struggle Allied forces were embroiled in out in the Pacific, the bloody island-hopping strategy, was slowly tipping in the Axis’ favor due to the absence of an Allied code that could be deemed “unbreakable.” Coded messages after coded messages were intercepted and translated as fast as the Allies could produce them. In fact, enemies would interrupt radio traffic to taunt the GIs, claiming that they were becoming impatient as they waited for their next “unbreakable” code. Clearly, the Allies’ ability to move troops, send materials, and fight effectively was being severely compromised.
After convincing the Marine Corps Brass and the Tribal Council to give his vision a chance, Johnston selected 29 Navajo tribe members to concoct a code that would prove to be—finally—unbreakable. Once the code had been established, the ranks of the Navajo code talkers swelled to over 400. Based on a series of Navajo words that started with one of the 26 letters of the alphabet and was riddled with metaphors and word plays, the Navajo code was the encryption that finally stumped the Axis forces and turned the tide in the Pacific.
Growing up in the Four Corners (containing New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, and Utah) as a boy who, unlike his peers, became well-acquainted with the Navajo tribe even as a child, Philip Johnston was no stranger to the confusing Navajo tongue. Outsiders and Johnston alike could make nothing of this language, with its unique intonations and fast-paced rhythm striking a dizzying cadence for even the most adept listener. Thus, when Johnston saw that the U.S. was in need of cryptographical help, he knew just the solution. Indubitably, stating that the situation was dire represented a gross understatement. The all-out struggle Allied forces were embroiled in out in the Pacific, the bloody island-hopping strategy, was slowly tipping in the Axis’ favor due to the absence of an Allied code that could be deemed “unbreakable.” Coded messages after coded messages were intercepted and translated as fast as the Allies could produce them. In fact, enemies would interrupt radio traffic to taunt the GIs, claiming that they were becoming impatient as they waited for their next “unbreakable” code. Clearly, the Allies’ ability to move troops, send materials, and fight effectively was being severely compromised.
After convincing the Marine Corps Brass and the Tribal Council to give his vision a chance, Johnston selected 29 Navajo tribe members to concoct a code that would prove to be—finally—unbreakable. Once the code had been established, the ranks of the Navajo code talkers swelled to over 400. Based on a series of Navajo words that started with one of the 26 letters of the alphabet and was riddled with metaphors and word plays, the Navajo code was the encryption that finally stumped the Axis forces and turned the tide in the Pacific.
"All I knew was this was our land. When I heard it was being bombed, being attacked by some foreign enemy, that didn't sit too well with me."
---Anonymous Navajo Code Talker
Example Code Keys
Exemplifying Courage & Honor
The Greatest Sacrifices: In total, nearly 4,000 Navajo alone, disregarding all other Native American tribes, left their world on the reservation for the world of war. Navajo, the language that uttered secret words or war, would be spoken from Guadalcanal to Okinawa as the code talkers strung phone lines, hauled field radios, and even fought on the front lines for the Allied cause. Although the code talkers played a huge role in almost all battles in the Pacific following their creation of the unbreakable Navajo code, it was at Iwo Jima that their importance was truly highlighted.
Tactically, Iwo Jima was the only 30-mile stretch of land that both sides were willing to die for. Holding vital airfields that would embody the final stepping stone towards an invasion of Japan, Iwo Jima was the staging ground of one of the bloodiest wars of WWII that, thanks to the preventative impact of the unbreakable Navajo code, was prevented from being much, much bloodier.
"It was raining, it was slick that day and you were wet and cold."
On February 19th, 1945, the largest assault force ever assembled by the Marine Corps was poised off Iwo Jima, lying in wait. When the GIs and code talkers hit the beach, the opening waves of attack were met with fierce Japanese gunfire.
"When you face that withering fire, it looks to you like it is impossible to survive it, impossible to come out alive, to even lift your head. It's awfully scary."
Emergency situations arose continually and without warning, and it was at these times that the Navajo code talkers were the most valuable asset of the entire offensive force, even more valuable than weaponry or manpower. Entire units would be pinned down, a scenario that necessitated all nearby forces firing upon that area so they could escape. Reinforcements would be needed, there would be demand for supporting fire, or casualties and enemy movements were being reported, all of which comprise essential information. Without the Navajo code talkers to transmit these messages, Iwo Jima could’ve ended in even more bloodshed and horror. Put simply, the code talkers were the lifeline of the offensive attack. Although the Battle of Iwo Jima cost nearly 6,000 American lives, the price would’ve been far greater without the Navajo, a people who had been subjugated yet were still willing to fight, and their language Americans once scorned.
Tactically, Iwo Jima was the only 30-mile stretch of land that both sides were willing to die for. Holding vital airfields that would embody the final stepping stone towards an invasion of Japan, Iwo Jima was the staging ground of one of the bloodiest wars of WWII that, thanks to the preventative impact of the unbreakable Navajo code, was prevented from being much, much bloodier.
"It was raining, it was slick that day and you were wet and cold."
On February 19th, 1945, the largest assault force ever assembled by the Marine Corps was poised off Iwo Jima, lying in wait. When the GIs and code talkers hit the beach, the opening waves of attack were met with fierce Japanese gunfire.
"When you face that withering fire, it looks to you like it is impossible to survive it, impossible to come out alive, to even lift your head. It's awfully scary."
Emergency situations arose continually and without warning, and it was at these times that the Navajo code talkers were the most valuable asset of the entire offensive force, even more valuable than weaponry or manpower. Entire units would be pinned down, a scenario that necessitated all nearby forces firing upon that area so they could escape. Reinforcements would be needed, there would be demand for supporting fire, or casualties and enemy movements were being reported, all of which comprise essential information. Without the Navajo code talkers to transmit these messages, Iwo Jima could’ve ended in even more bloodshed and horror. Put simply, the code talkers were the lifeline of the offensive attack. Although the Battle of Iwo Jima cost nearly 6,000 American lives, the price would’ve been far greater without the Navajo, a people who had been subjugated yet were still willing to fight, and their language Americans once scorned.
"There isn't a code talker who will say to heck with the U.S., to America, because this is my mother, this my land. Everything I have is right here."
---Anonymous Navajo Code Talker
A brief video that succinctly and eloquently summarizes the significance of the Navajo code talkers, in regards to WWII, future race relations, and the development of a larger Native American ethnic identity.
A quick song emphasizing the importance of the sacrifices and contributions of the Navajo code talkers.